Kinetic energy is the energy an object possesses due to its motion. Any moving object — a rolling ball, a flying plane, or a speeding car — has kinetic energy. The faster it moves or the more massive it is, the greater its kinetic energy.
A 2 kg ball rolls at 5 m/s. What is its kinetic energy?
m = 2 kg v = 5 m/sKE = ½ × m × v²v² = 5² = 25 m²/s²KE = 0.5 × 2 × 25 = 25The ball has 25 Joules of kinetic energy.
Because velocity is squared, doubling the speed of an object quadruples its kinetic energy. This is why high-speed crashes are so much more dangerous than low-speed ones.